EDITIONS

Follow us

President Ronald Reagan's administration had sought to impose a set of economic restrictions under a presidential executive order. But opponents, including 81 House Republicans, insisted that approach failed to go far enough. | AP

House overrides Reagan apartheid veto, Sept. 29, 1986

On this day in 1986, the House voted 313-83 to override President Ronald Reagan’s veto of the Comprehensive Apartheid Act, which levied economic sanctions against the Republic of South Africa. On Oct. 2, the Senate followed suit, voting 78-21 to override.

It marked the first time since enactment of the War Powers Resolution in 1973 that Congress had overridden a presidential foreign policy veto.

Story Continued Below

The legislation reflected a compromise between two versions of the bill, respectively sponsored by Reps. Bill Gray (D-Pa.) and Ron Dellums (D-Calif.). The Congressional Black Caucus served as a prime mover in advancing the measure.

The act banned new U.S. loans and corporate investments in South Africa. An accompanying slew of sanctions prohibited importation of a wide range of South African goods — including steel, iron, uranium, coal, textiles and farm products. It also banned the South African government from holding U.S. bank accounts and withdrew South African Airways’ U.S. landing rights.

The Reagan administration had sought to impose a set of economic restrictions under a presidential executive order. But opponents, including 81 House Republicans, insisted that approach failed to go far enough.

POLITICO Playbook newsletter

Sign up today to receive the #1-rated newsletter in politics

Email

By signing up you agree to receive email newsletters or alerts from POLITICO. You can unsubscribe at any time.

In responding to the congressional action, Reagan said:

“[The] … vote should not be viewed as the final chapter in America’s efforts, along with our allies, to address the plight of the people of South Africa. Instead, it underscores that America—and that means all of us—opposes apartheid, a malevolent and archaic system totally alien to our ideals. The debate … was not whether or not to oppose apartheid but, instead, how best to oppose it and how best to bring freedom to that troubled country ...

“Punitive sanctions, I believe, are not the best course of action; they hurt the very people they are intended to help. My hope is that these punitive sanctions do not lead to more violence and more repression. Our administration will, nevertheless, implement the law. It must be recognized, however, that this will not solve the serious problems that plague that country. The United States must also move forward with positive measures to encourage peaceful change and advance the cause of democracy in South Africa … ”

For his part, Gray, the House Budget Committee chairman, saw the override as “a moral and diplomatic wake-up call.” Rep. Mickey Leland (D-Texas) said, “This is probably the greatest victory we’ve ever experienced. The American people have spoken and will be heard around the world.” As Leland had foreseen, many European nations as well as Japan soon imposed comparable sanctions. Business confidence in the apartheid state plummeted, plunging the South African economy into a deep recession.

In 1990, a white-minority government freed Nelson Mandela from prison after 27 years. It subsequently repealed the apartheid legislation, which led to the removal of the U.S. sanctions and, thereafter, to Mandela’s election as the country’s first black president.